Imprisoned 600 Days: Update on Vietnam Christian Prisoner

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Nguyen Van Dai of Vietnam was charged on July 30, 2017, with “carrying out activities with the purpose of overthrowing the Peoples’ administration.” If he is found guilty of this crime, he could face up to 20 years in prison or even the death penalty.

Dai is a religious freedom advocate and human rights lawyer who has been in detention since December 2015. He has been detained for 19 months without a trial.

August 7, marked his 600th day in prison. Activists in London chalked 600 lines and the hashtag #FreeNguyenVanDai on the sidewalk in front of the Vietnamese Embassy.

This is not the first time that Dai has been punished for his human rights work. One year after founding the Committee for Human Rights in Vietnam in 2006, he was put under house arrest. He was forced to stay under house arrest until 2015.

Jubilee Campaign has been advocating to the US State Department to designate Vietnam as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC). CPCs are countries that severely violate religious freedom. With Vietnam’s continued practice of arresting religious freedom advocates such as Mr. Dai, we are asking that the US recognize and take action against the government’s abuse of human rights.

Please pray for Dai and others in Vietnam who are facing unfair imprisonment.